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Port Richey council votes to rejoin PRM health trust; directs staff to study self‑insurance options
Summary
The Port Richey City Council approved rejoining the PRM Group Health Trust with Florida Blue as the carrier for fiscal year 2026, designating City Manager Andrew Butterfield as the city’s primary board member and Sal Acari as alternate. Councilors also directed staff to research self‑insurance and pool alternatives for future years.
The Port Richey City Council approved a motion to rejoin the PRM Group Health Trust with Florida Blue as the carrier for the upcoming fiscal year and authorized the mayor to sign the PRM bylaws cooperative agreement. The motion also designated City Manager Andrew Butterfield as the city’s primary group health trust board member and Sal Acari as the alternate.
City Manager Andrew Butterfield told the council the two options before the city — rejoining the PRM pool or selecting a UnitedHealthcare plan through the city’s broker — both “reflect about a 14% increase in cost to the city over last year.” He said the PRM pool would let employees remain with Florida Blue and keep their existing doctors and pharmacies.
A broker representative (Marsh & McLennan, represented in the meeting by Adam) explained the PRM pool spreads risk across a larger group and that annual increases for a pool “are slight as opposed to being an independent employee base of 70.” Both proposals presented to the council were described as fitting within the city’s budget for FY26.
Councilors raised questions about the city’s recent billed amount for medical services and whether the city should pursue a self‑insurance model. Staff said the city’s billed amount was about $720,000; the actual amount insurers paid was not provided by the broker and was “not specified” in the packet. Staff and council members discussed that while billed amounts can be much higher than paid amounts, moving to a self‑insured model would require administrative arrangements, reinsurance and time to build reserves.
Councilmembers asked staff to begin work immediately to study alternatives, including joining other pools or exploring self‑insurance with third‑party administrators. The mayor said he planned outreach to neighboring governments and county administrators to identify potential pooling or clinic partnerships.
The council approved the PRM‑Florida Blue option by voice vote. The motion included authority for the mayor to sign the PRM bylaws cooperative agreement; it also named Butterfield as the primary board member and Sal Acari as alternate. Council members did not record a roll‑call vote count in the minutes.
Staff noted open enrollment was approaching and said the PRM option would allow an easier administrative transition for employees this year while the city examines longer‑term options. Council directed staff — led by the city manager and finance director — to report back with an analysis of self‑insurance feasibility, possible pool partners, and claim‑payment history for prior years.
The council’s decision sets the city’s carrier for FY26 while starting a directed review that could alter the city’s approach to employee health benefits in future budgets.
